Autobiography of Us - Hardcover

'In Aria Beth Sloss's marvellous debut novel, the passage of time brings love and pain and friendship, then reverses them all -- a brilliant chronicle of women's lives in America' Andrew Sean Greer, author of The Story of a Marriage 'Some friendships are fated, not chosen. Aria Beth Sloss's gorgeous first novel deftly and richly exposes the lasting hope and inevitable wounds that come from great love' Maggie Shipstead, author of Seating Arrangements 'A heartrending novel of two girls, the women they become, and the bond they forge that endures into the next generation. Aria Beth Sloss has written a lyrical and deeply moving love letter to the power of friendship' Ellen Feldman, Orange Prize shortlisted author of Scottsboro and Next to Love 'In Aria Beth Sloss's marvellous debut novel, the passage of time brings love and pain and friendship, then reverses them all--a brilliant chronicle of women's lives in America.' Andrew Sean Greer, author of The Story of a Marriage 'A heartrending novel of two girls, the women they become, and the bond they forge that endures into the next generation. Aria Beth Sloss has written a lyrical and deeply moving love letter to the power of friendship.' Ellen Feldman, author of Scotsboro and Next to Love 'Some friendships are fated, not chosen. Aria Beth Sloss's gorgeous first novel deftly and richly exposes the lasting hope as well as the inevitable wounds that come from great love. Raw and vital, Autobiography of Us leaves us marveling at the strange, beautiful architecture of redemption.' Maggie Shipstead, author of Seating Arrangements 'The book plays out the friends' complicated dynamic against a tableau of enormous changes for women, resulting in a potent story of altered expectations and thwarted dreams... blossoms in stirring and surprising ways.' New York Times 'Sharply imagined... Sloss writes with assured grace, capturing the conflicted sensibilities of a generation of women.'O magazine

Coming of age in early 1960s suburban California, Rebecca Madden and her beautiful, reckless best friend Alex dream of lives beyond their mothers' narrow expectations. As teenagers they are inseparable. But then, one sweltering evening the summer before their college graduation, a single act of betrayal changes everything. Decades later, Rebecca's haunting confession reveals the truth about that night, the years that followed, and the friendship that defined her. Gorgeous, captivating and compelling, Autobiography of Us is the story of two women caught between repression and rebellion, and the sacrifices, struggles and triumphs of a generation.